Should Parents Limit Teenagers’ Use of Social Media

This essay evaluates the negative and positive impacts of social media on teenagers and proposes that parents should limit their use due to its negative influence on health and overall development.

Running head: SOCIAL MEDIA 0
English Composition
Should Parents Limit Teenagers’ Use of Social Media

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Should Parents Limit Teenagers’ Use of Social Media
Social media is referred to websites and applications that enable their users to share or create
content and participate in social networking. It is the collection of different online
communications channels that are dedicated to community-based interaction, collaboration,
input and content sharing (Lenhart et al.). Parents, children and teenagers are aware of social
media sites such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat and others. There are more than
3.8 billion internet users worldwide from which more than 3 billion users are active on social
media sites (Kemp). These statistics show that social media sites have a substantial impact on
people’s lives globally. However, with the growing popularity of social media sites, negative
implications relating to them increased as well. Especially for teenagers, heavy use of social
media sites results in negatively affecting their education level, health, mental development
and future growth (Lenhart et al.). The thesis statement of this essay is that ‘parents should
take appropriate steps for limiting teenagers’ use of social media due to its negative influence
on the health and overall development’. This essay will make proposal arguments regarding
why parents should limit teenagers’ use of social media by evaluating its negative and
positive impacts. Further, this essay will provide proposal arguments regarding how parents
can limit teenagers’ use of social media.
Teenagers are generally interested in the latest technologies that enable them to enhance their
communication and express their feelings. For teenagers, the internet is a great
communication tool which has changed the traditional mode of interactions (Lenhart et al.).
According to Siddiqui and Singh (71), social media users spend 33 percent time on mail, 26.8
percent on surfing, 18.7 percent on chatting, 17 percent on social media and 4.5 percent on
others. The use of social media is growing rapidly, and it is substantially popular among
teenagers. However, along with its usage, the negative impact of social media sites is
growing as well. Teenagers use social media sites because they are a great source for
collecting worldwide information instantaneously while at the same time it is a great tool for
communication (Boyd). The use of social media started as a hobby or time pass, however, it
quickly turns into an addition for teenagers. According to O’Keeffe and Kathleen (800-804),
teenagers are addicted to social media because it provides them an open platform to express
themselves. However, it has a negative impact because they get addicted to the use of social
media which negatively affects their mental and physical health. Teenagers also misuse social
media sites to send hate messages to one another. For example, as per the study of Aoyama

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and Talbert (183), cases of cyberbullying have grown internationally. The study provided that
34 percent of student in Canada form grades 7 to 11 has been cyberbullied, and in England,
25 percent youth between 11 and 19 has been cyberbullied. Therefore, it is proposed that
parents should take actions for limiting social media use of teenagers for protecting them
against bullying.
The negative health implication of the excessive use of social media sites is the primary
reason for parents to limit teenagers’ use of social media. According to Udorie, teenagers lose
more than two hours of sleep every night because of excessive use and pressure of social
media. The author argued that teenagers are emotionally attached to their social media
accounts, and it negatively affects their sleep schedule (Udorie). The study of Wood and
Scott (41-49) proved how social media can reduce sleep of adolescence and which increases
health issues in teenagers such as anxiety and depression. Teenagers feel the need to
continuously check their social media accounts due to FOMO or ‘fear of missing out’ which
require them to ensure that they stay up-to-date with the latest events (Udorie). It is difficult
for teenagers to limit their use of social media sites since they are unable to understand their
negative impact. They become the victim of Facebook depression which causes an emotional
disturbance because they spend excessive time on social media sites (Steers, Wickham, and
Acitelli, 701-731). However, another study showed that use of Facebook makes people
happier and it also results in increasing social trust and engagement among users (Valenzuela,
Park and Kee, 875-901). Although these studies contradict each other, however, the risk of
health issues should be prioritised, and parents should limit teenagers’ use of social media
sites. Teenagers use social media sites for ‘self-medication’ that allow them to run away and
escape their problems rather than gaining knowledge. The health disadvantages of social
media sites overcome their merits which increase the requirement limiting their uses for
protecting teenagers from depression and anxiety.
Another reason for limiting social media use for teenagers is that without realising, addiction
of social media can reduce social relation among teenagers (Madden et al., 2-86). Madden et
al. (2-86) claimed that teenagers are addicted to social media sites because they spend most of
their time on them. Teenagers use them for interacting with others, however, most teenagers
use them to become popular and gain more “likes” on their pictures or videos. Without an
appropriate understanding of consequences, teenagers upload their photos and details on
social media that can negatively affect them. Use of social media triggers a dopamine high in
teenagers as they get more likes and comments on their photos and videos. It encourages

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them to upload more picture and video, and they become addicted to them (Madden et al., 2-
86). Teenagers also lose their social skills after becoming addicted to social media sites
because they are able to control each aspect online, however, in real life they face difficulty
dealing with others. They create a fake persona online which did not apply in real life; it
negatively affects their real-life relationships (Marwick and Boyd, 1051-1067). High
dependence on social media reduces family closeness between teens and their parents
(Marwick and Boyd, 1051-1067). Due to lack of social skills, teenagers face difficulties while
looking for jobs and getting higher education in the future (Madden et al., 2-86). Therefore,
parents should limit teenagers’ use of social media and encourage them to experience the
‘real world’ which will assist them in improving their social skills.
The cases of cyberbullying are increasing rapidly and addiction to social media sites
increases their negative consequences. The study of Kaplan and Haenlein (59-68) provided
that with the popularity of social media sites, cyberbullying has become a substantial issue
which negatively affects teenagers’ development. The study showed a direct link between
social media use and cyberbullying. The impact of cyberbullying is more dangerous than
traditional forms of bullying because cyberbullies hide their identity which makes their attack
harsher than compared to face-to-face bullying. They also did not have an immediate
exchange of emotions due to which they are unable to assess the negative impact of their
bullying. On the other hand, most teenagers did not involve their parents because of the fear
that they might lose smartphone privileges which make matter worst and it leads to
depression or even suicide. Social media sites also pose a threat of hacking; cybercriminals
can hack and collect personal data of users through their social media account and use it to
blackmail them (Kaplan and Haenlein, 59-68). For example, in 2017, a cyber-criminal
targeted more than six million Instagram accounts of celebrities and people which affected
their privacy (Wilford). The dopamine high triggered by the use of social media encourages
teenagers to continuously share their personal information online which makes them a
potential target for cybercriminals.
Correa, Hinsley and Zuniga (247-253) argued in their study that social media sites expose
teenagers to negative content that affects their social development. Many terrorist groups take
advantage of teenagers’ addiction to social media and recruit them for committing illegal
activities (Correa, Hinsley and Zuniga, 247-253). The popularity of ‘sexting’ has grown
between teenagers as well, and they are more likely to use social media sites for sexting
Hasinoff (449-465) claimed that teenagers are more likely to do sexting with their partner or

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another stranger that they met online. In both cases, another person can blackmail or illegally
use the personal data of teenagers such as photos, videos or message to get an unfair
advantage which can ruin their entire lives (Hasinoff, 449-465). It can result in negatively
affecting their development; therefore, parents should limit teenagers’ use of social media
(Boyd). Therefore, it is necessary that teenage did not excessively use social media sites and
parents can take appropriate steps to stop their children from accessing them.
There are many studies which argue that teenagers are addicted to social media sites, and it
causes low self-esteem, obesity, depression and anxiety (Yardi and Bruckman). The counter
arguments include that social media sites allow teenagers to collect knowledge and interact
with people worldwide. However, excessive use can have substantial negative impacts.
Therefore, it is important that parents take appropriate actions to lower or prevent these
negative effects from happening. Simply stopping teenagers from accessing social media sites
cannot work because they are more likely to get frustrated and it negatively affects their
relationship with their parents. It is proposed that a good way for parents to limit teenagers’
from using social media sites is to set a good example at home setting and overall soundings.
Parents should set an example for teenagers of what a moderate time on social media can be
(Bolton et al., 245-267). They should also avoid using smartphones near teenagers, and they
should indulge in conversation with them. They should also teach them about the negative
consequences of excessive social media use so that they are able to understand its negative
implications (Lenhart et al.). It is proposed that parents should encourage teenagers to go
outside and meet new people, and they should do outside fun activities with them. These
proposals can assist parents in limiting teenagers’ use of social media sites.
In conclusion, social media has become a substantial part of people’s lives, and a large
number of teenagers use social media sites on a daily routine. Social media sites can provide
worldwide knowledge to teenagers, and they also assist teenagers in meeting new people
around the world. However, there are many negative effects of excessive social media use
such as lack of sleep which result in increased depression and anxiety among teenagers.
Excessive use of social media results in causing multiple health issues in teenagers such as
obesity, sleeping disorder, anxiety, depression and others. It also results in reducing social
skills of teenagers and makes them dependent on the use of social media sites. Along with
negative health implications, there are many security issues of using social media sites as
well. Teenagers are more likely to get cyber bullied since it is easier for bullies to use social
media sites for bullying others. Use of social media sites also increases the risk of cyber-

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attacks on teenagers’ social media accounts which can be accessed by cybercriminals to gain
personal information of teenager which they used to gain an unfair advantage. This essay
proposed that in order to tackle these issues, parents can set examples for their children and
teach them about the negative implications of social media sites. They can use mobile
applications to monitor teenagers’ activity on social media sites which can protect them from
negative consequences of social media. Teenagers can take full advantage of social media’s
potential if they use them carefully and within limits.

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